DJ Shadow Hiding New Vinyl Release In Eastern European Record Stores

DJ Shadow released his first new music in a while yesterday with a couple of Soundcloud clips of his latest creations. You can hear those over at this link, and Shadow has been talking about his novel new ideas for promoting his latest record, which may prove to be a welcome (and potentially lucrative) surprise for anyone prone to crate digging in Eastern Europe.

“The idea is ‘shop-placing;’ it’s the opposite of shoplifting,” he said. “You go into a store, and leave your record in the racks to be discovered later. It’s not about being cute, it’s about passing the music along in the most unobtrusive way possible.” Those two new tracks are available to download for free from Shadow’s offical site today for a 24 hour period, but he’s clearly not enamored with this method of distributing music.

“I’d rather give away free vinyl than a download, because to me, downloads are so impersonal and soulless,” he claimed. “In 2010, it has become akin to sending your dad an e-card on his birthday; no personality, no class. And from an artistic point of view, I think it sends a negative message about the worth of the music.” Limited vinyl releases of “Def Surrounds Us/I’ve Been Trying” will also be available in U.S. record stores.